Cable pullers in general are well-known devices for pulling power cables, data cables, or other wiring (collectively referred to as “cable”) through conduits such as building conduits. A cable puller typically includes a capstan and a motor which powers and rotates the capstan. The cable or a rope tied to the cable is wound around and tails off the capstan during operation. The capstan thus generally acts as a force multiplier during operation. Use of the cable puller to pull the cable through the conduit allows a user of the cable puller to exert only a small force on the cable and/or rope. This relatively small force is translated into a large force of several thousand pounds which is exerted on the cable and/or rope and which provides enough force on the cable and/or rope to pull the cable through the conduit.
Examples of known cable pullers are provided in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,434,741 to Radle et al. entitled “Powered Cable Puller”; U.S. Pat. No. 8,246,009 to Plummer entitled “Cable Puller with Pivot Adjuster for Converting Between Upward and Downward Cable Pulling”; U.S. Pat. No. 8,016,267 to Jordan et al. entitled “Wire Puller and Conduit Adapter”; U.S. Pat. No. 7,070,168 to Plummer entitled “Cable Puller Adapter”; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0131645 to Jordan et al. entitled “Wire or Rope Puller”, all of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.
One constant concern with cable pullers is the flexibility of the cable pullers. For example, in many cases, cable pullers must fit within and move around in small spaces to access the conduits through which cable must be pulled. Some known cable pullers have partially address these concerns by having features which facilitate pivotal movement of various components, such as conduit-engagement devices on the ends of the cable pullers, about horizontal axes. These features allow the cable pullers to access conduits at different heights and perform both “down-pull” and “up-pull” procedures. However, further and additional cable puller flexibility is desired.
Accordingly, improved cable pullers are desired in the art. In particular, cable pullers with improved rotational features would be advantageous.